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Jesse Borek highlights the top FanDuel MLB DFS lineup picks for 9/24/20, and a couple of sleepers to consider while building daily rosters.
There are just two days left in the regular season and with that come unpredictable lineup decisions as MLB teams clinch playoff spots and begin resting starters. This can create some tricky lineup decisions when setting DFS lineups but it can also lead to other strong values as cheaper players may hit higher in the lineup than they normally would.
With just two days left in the regular season I intend to treasure the full-11 game slate we've got on tap this fine Saturday. Don't get me wrong, MLB postseason DFS is fun too and we here at RotoBaller will continue to provide winning DFS analysis deep into the playoffs, but there's nothing quite like digging into a massive player pool to try and find that winning combo that can put up an obscene point total and take down a larger GPP.
I'll provide you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for the FanDuel main slate on 9/24/2020. Be sure to check out all the MLB player news, including late scratches, and the projected and confirmed daily MLB lineups for each DFS slate. You can also read more DFS advice and lineup picks for sites like DraftKings, and other sports.
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Zack Wheeler, P - PHI @ TB ($8,800)
Wheeler is just the seventh-highest priced arm but he's my top pitcher on the slate and it's not particularly close. The Phillies are one of the teams still fighting for postseason birth and they should ride their $85 million free-agent acquisition to a much-needed win in this game. The Philly bullpen has been wretched so expect manager Joe Girardi to let Wheeler go as long as he's pitching well, something he's done a lot of this season. Wheeler hasn't allowed more than three earned runs in any of his 10 starts and has lasted at least 5 2/3 innings in every start. The one drawback to Wheeler is he doesn't rack up a ton of strikeouts, but the Rays do, they have the third-highest strikeout rate vs right-handed pitching. Wheeler is a master of avoiding hard contact with a microscopic 3.1 percent barrel rate and he issues almost no walks. He has a high floor for cash games and could smash if Girardi lets him go past 100 pitches as he's done before.
Matthew Boyd, P - DET @ KC ($7,600)
It's hard to believe I inserted this name into an actual FanDuel contest with real-US currency on the line but here we are. Boyd has been one of the premiere disappointments of the 2020 fantasy baseball season but I cannot be convinced the left-hander is not a talented pitcher. His FIP is 1.20 runs below his actual ERA, the fourth largest difference in the Majors. He allows 2.32 HR/9 which is the second-highest in the Majors; and he's one of just four pitchers with a HR/9 above two. This is partially due to a HR/FB rate over 20 percent, a number due for regression. He also has a .320 BABIP against and a 64.8 percent strand-rate, you guessed it, both unsustainable numbers due to regress to the mean. Maybe that regression happens Saturday, maybe we need to wait until 2021. At his price, I'm willing to roll the dice one more time in GPPs against a Royals lineup that isn't daunting below the top-three in the order. Kansas City is a pitcher-friendly venue so if some of the fly balls Boyd allows stay in the yard, he could put up a strong game to get us #BoydBoys back on the hype train for next season.
FanDuel DFS Infielders
Josh Fuentes, 1B - COL @ ARI ($2,600)
Diamondbacks starter Luke Weaver is my favorite pitcher to pick on today and Fuentes is an incredible value as the five-hole hitter in this lineup. Weaver struggles vs left-handed batters with a .418 wOBA allowed to lefties and he should struggle with the Rockies-LHB. Fuentes should have multiple RBI opportunities versus a pitcher with a 6.51 ERA.
Ryan McMahon, 2B - COL @ ARI ($2,700)
McMahon tends to hit behind Fuentes in the Colorado batting order and I love pairing the two for under 3k each. McMahon has been heating up with five hits in his last four games and homered on Friday. He gets the same juicy matchup versus Weaver as Colorado is a wildly affordable stack when they're not playing in their home ballpark. As mentioned with Fuentes, Weaver struggles versus lefties so McMahon should be in line for another strong game today.
Maikel Franco, 3B - KC vs. DET ($3,000)
If you're like most people and believe the pitcher with a 6.96 ERA is actually bad, then Franco is a strong play Saturday. I don't recommend playing Franco and Boyd together but I do like the Royals' third baseman in this matchup. Franco had a six-game hit streak snapped on Friday but the former Phillie has been hitting the ball well lately and is a fly-ball hitter so he has a good chance to run into a pitch for a homer vs a fly-ball pitcher in Boyd.
Tim Anderson, SS - CWS vs. CHC ($4,000)
Cubs starter Jon Lester is another pitcher to pick on today and the ChiSox leadoff hitter is a strong play as a one-off or as the top of a stack with MVP candidate Jose Abreu (who is a strong play if paying up at 1B, but should be chalky in this matchup). Anderson broke out last season and is backing it up in 2020 with career-highs in batting average (.337), on-base percentage (.370), and slugging percentage (.553). Lester has allowed just two runs in his last three starts but much like a five-star resort in the middle of a desert, those starts are a mirage. Lester has a 4.99xFIP on the season and allowed five earned runs in each of his previous two starts, against bad offenses. This White Sox lineup is a different animal and they should have their way with the veteran left-hander.
FanDuel DFS Outfielders
Adam Engel, OF - CHW vs. CHC ($2,400)
The White Sox will be a popular stack versus Lester and while Anderson, Abreu, and Moncada will be popular plays, don't sleep on Engel at the bottom of the order. Engel is batting .296 on the season with a .457 slugging percentage. He has better career numbers when facing lefties and is batting .333 against southpaws this season. At $2,400 he is a strong salary-relief option and works as part of an 8-1-2-3 stack with the other high-salary White Sox.
Bryce Harper, OF - PHI @ TB ($4,300)
Harper has quietly put up a strong campaign with 13 homers, 41 runs scored, 32 RBI, and eight steals. He is slugging a strong .546 on the season and is coming off back-to-back multi-hit games including a two-homer effort on Thursday. He'll face Ryan Yarborough who is a good pitcher, but not someone who matches up well with Harper. Yarborough lives on the edge of the strike zone and relies primarily on weak contact. Harper, on the other hand, makes great contact and takes his walks giving him a high floor. With Philly fighting for postseason birth, Harper is one of the high-priced stars guaranteed to not get pinch-hit for late in the game and he's the top hitter to pay-up for.
Raimel Tapia, OF - COL @ ARI ($2,700)
Tapia is another key part of a Rockies stack as the leadoff hitter facing a potential gas can in Weaver. Tapia is scalding-hot at the plate right now with nine hits in his last five games. He also has two steals in that time and eight on the season so there are a number of ways Tapia can return value at this cost with just one trip on the base paths. He's another lefty to attack Weaver with and should have a high floor in this matchup.
